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Dr. Paul Hébert named CMAJ editor-in-chief

The publisher of the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ), Glenda Proctor, recently announced the appointment of Dr. Paul Hébert as its new editor-in-chief.

Dr. Hébert is a highly regarded clinician scientist who practices at the Ottawa Hospital and has authored more than 180 publications. He is vice-chair of research in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Ottawa, where he is also a professor in the Departments of Critical Care and Epidemiology, and holds the Chair in Transfusion and Critical Research at the Ottawa Health Research Institute.

Dr. Hébert took over the reins on January 2, 2007 from Dr. Noni MacDonald, acting editor-in-chief and an alumna of the University.

The CMAJ has faced a tumultuous year over the issue of editorial independence, with the dismissal of the former editor-in-chief. A new governance structure now enshrines editorial independence.

“CMAJ has been through a rough year but it’s doing very well. What we are going to do now is to continue with the good parts, like the news journalism, and increase the journal’s impact by dramatically enhancing both the quantity and quality of the research elements,” said Dr. Hébert.